Coffee

I am a coffee drinker. There is no way around it. I love the mate but what talks to me in the dull morning start is my sweet cup of coffee.

I was a bit worried when I first arrived because coffee to-go is not common in Argentina. And I don’t have time to sit everyday at the café. This meant a few adjustments on my part. I could make it at home. Sounds simple enough, right?

Right, but in Argentina, virtually no one owns a coffee brewer because they are criminally expensive.

But I saw coffee in the stores? How are they making it?

Back to square one, I got a French press but then you have to go to a store and ask someone to grind special large grounds for you. This isn’t right. There is regular coffee at the store?

My teacher serves me little espressos from an instant coffee, just mix with water and serve. This was looking like an option but I was determined.

Then the other day, a miracle happened. The woman that I live with asked me if I wanted a cup of coffee.

I paused with intense curiosity and said, “si, por favor, gracias”.

I saw that she had regular coffee grinds from the store. She pulled out the most simple and genius piece of equipment, a cloth coffee filter. I was almost embarrassed to say that I had never seen this before. It is so logical that I can’t believe I didn’t think of it on my own!

Here is to my favorite cup of coffee!